She Died So That Others Could Live
by Marauder Pawsly
Summary: Voldemort's captured Morgan Anderson, the fiance of Sirius Black. Now Sirius thinks she's dead and Remus is heartbroken. But wait--why was Sirius so dead-set on not letting Morgan leave his sight?
1. She died so that others could live

Disclaimer: If you lot really think that I'm J.K. Rowling, then I pity your parents for having such stupid kids. I'm not her! She's a genius! I'm an insane psycho freak with an obsession with nearly every boy in Potterverse! Get it through your heads!

Morgan Anderson awoke late at night. It was so dark that her eyes had troubled adjusting to the thin moonlight peeping in through the cracks in the walls.

After a moment, she realized that she was in a cell. The dirt floor was gritty and covered in little pebbles from the cracking walls, the walls and ceiling were rough and uneven, and the door was thick and forbidding.

Morgan pounded her fist against the wall, cursing her stupidity. Why, WHY, had she been enough of a git to think that the Death Eater was Dorcas? HOW could he have been that stupid, especially when she knew that Dorcas had just gone off in--

DORCAS!

"Dorcas!" Morgan hissed, feeling her way around the little cell with her hands. Frantically she searched her robes for her wand and swore under her breath; her wand had been taken. "Dorcas! Where are you? _Dorcas!_"

Only silence and blackness answered her.

"Your partner isn't here," snarled a familiar voice from the tiny window in the door. Morgan whipped around.

"YOU!" she exclaimed.

Lucius's face broke out into a smirk, though heavily shadowed, that Morgan could see quite well.

"How did you like my little disguise?" he asked conversationally. 

"You filthy rat, you scum, you--"

Lucius laughed. "You're very funny, Miss Anderson," he said quietly. "Voldemort shall have fun playing with you."

Morgan's dark blue eyes widened. "Voldemort?" she repeated.

"Yes, Voldemort," Lucius said, apparently losing patience. "He killed your partner Dorcas Meadowes personally. Seemed to amuse him, it did."

"He killed Dorcas?"

"What are you, a parrot?" Lucius snapped impatiently. To someone out of Morgan's eye range (which wasn't too large to begin with) he shouted, "Tell our master to take his time! The Auror's in shock!"

"Which Auror?" shouted a voice that Morgan recognized as belonging to Crabbe. Or maybe Goyle. They do sound alike--This is no time to be debating on whose talking, Pawsly! she screamed at herself. You're about to be killed and you're wondering who the rat is shouting at!

"The Anderson girl!" Lucius shouted back.

"Oh yes, her." Morgan thought that the voice sounded almost in awe. "Pity she won't join us."

"I'll _never_ be a Death Eater!" Morgan shouted furiously. "EVER!"

There was a round of laughter from the dungeons. Lucius Malfoy shut the little window to Morgan's cell; his footsteps echoed in the vast chambers as he strode away.

Morgan, now very afraid, curled into a ball and leaned against the biggest crack in the wall, trying to see outside the hopes of spying a member of the Order. She prayed that someone would come save her. More than just her own life was at stake. After an hour, she sunk into a fitful sleep.

"Morgan, please don't go," Sirius said. "Please. What happens if you get hurt? You know Dorcas panics easily--"

"Sirius, Sirius, calm down," Morgan said soothingly, laying a hand on his shoulder. "I'll be fine. Don't worry. I'll get out of this without a scratch and with four Death Eater captures to my name."

Sirius didn't look convinced.

"Lily, James, Remus! One of you talk some sense into her!" he said, looking at his friends. He knew that Morgan would only do the opposite of whatever Peter told her to do, but she almost always listened to Remus.

"Sirius _is_ right, Paws," James said slowly.

"Why risk your neck today when we can group together tomorrow and possibly come out alive?" Lily said reasonably.

"Lily's got a point," Remus said. "Listen to them, Morgan. If we ambush them tomorrow, we'll be able to capture more Death Eaters." In his tone and in his eyes were traces of the deep love he had for Morgan, and no matter how hard he tried to hide it, he never really could.

"Yes, but if Dorcas and I ambush a few tonight, we can scare them into coming out into the open and we can capture more of them," Morgan persisted.

"But Morgan--"

"Please, Sirius," Morgan said, not looking at him. "Please?"

Sirius placed his hand on Morgan's pale cheek, twirling a strand of her raven black between his fingers. "Morgan," he said softly, "this is dangerous. Our wedding would depend on this little mission. Let someone else go. You'll stay safe at headquarters, and we can joke around and plan on what we're going to do when all of this is over....Please don't go."

"Sirius, it's not fair," Morgan said, pulling away. She wrapped her arms around herself and stood by the window, surveying the activity. Ministry officials running about, helping members of the Order of the Phoenix unknowingly, even a few couples sitting around, talking and laughing like Sirius wanted them to do. 

"You and James and Remus running around, capturing Death Eaters, and me and Lily staying home, worrying about you," she said, refusing to even look at Sirius's reflection. "You don't know how much we worry about you when you're gone. Always expecting the worst, and just as we've come to think that you're dead, you burst in and we shower you in hugs and kisses and won't leave you alone for even a minute....." She broke off, and stared at the moonlit sky. Tears rolled down her cheeks as every horrible image she had ever thought when Sirius was gone raced through her mind. Sirius lying on his back, blood trickling down his forehead; Sirius being tortured by the Cruciatus Curse; Sirius being killed by Voldemort--

Morgan let out a little moan at the memory; Sirius hurried towards her and slipped his arms around her, patting her head and whispering soothing words.

Morgan looked at the diamond ring on her left hand. Sirius had spent quite a lot of money on it; James told her later that Sirius had bribed a bunch of goblins to carve it. It was crystal clear and shaped like a tiny phoenix.

"Morgan, I just don't want you to get hurt," he said. Morgan tensed up and Sirius knew he was treading on dangerous territory; Morgan hated it when people said that being in the Order was men's work.

"You mean the world to me, and if you get killed, what will I do?" he said quickly, kissing the top of her head.

"You'll still have Lily," Morgan said. "And James. And Remus. And Wormtail." She practically spat out Peter's nickname; she never said his real name. She didn't trust him as much as Sirius did.

Crookshanks jumped onto the window sill, and Morgan scratched his head absent-mindedly. Even her cat was showing signs of the raging war. Once lean and handsome, with a thin, pointed face, Crookshanks was now cobby and his face was ugly and squashed. He even sported a few scars from not knowing when to get out of the way.

"And you'll have Crookshanks too," Morgan added. "He'll take care of you." Crookshanks purred loudly as if agreeing.

"Yes, but I can't marry a cat," Sirius said, cracking a grin. 

From behind them, Lily stifled a giggle, Remus and James exchanged glances, and Peter was doubled over in silent giggles.

"So that's what this is about?!" Morgan exclaimed angrily, pulling away from her fiance and glaring at him. Their friends stopped laughing immediately. "You don't want me to leave tonight just so we can get married?!"

"No, Morgan, that's not it--"

"If you wanted my happiness, then we should've been married straight out of Hogwarts like James and Lily!" Morgan continued.

"I _do_ care about your happiness--" Sirius began.

"Then you should let me go in this mission!" Morgan said furiously. "You aren't the boss of me! I can do whatever I want!"

"Yes, I know that--"

"I'm leaving, and you can't stop me!" Morgan said coldly. She grabbed her cloak and stormed outside.

Sirius made to take off after her, but Remus laid a hand on his shoulder and said, "Let her go."

"You may not care about her, but I--"

"Don't you dare tell me I don't care about her!" Remus yelled.

Sirius blinked, looked from Morgan to Remus, started to say something when James interrupted.

"Sirius, we all care about Morgan, and we want to see her happy," James said. "We can't keep her cooped up in this house until the war blows over. She has to get some experience of her own--"

"She _has_ experience!" Sirius said quickly, but Lily cut his next words off.

"I don't think Auror training is quite what she had in mind, Sirius," Lily said quietly. 

"Even Lily's had her fair share of duels, Padfoot," Peter added. At his words, Crookshanks hissed at him and ran from the room. He, like his mistress, clearly did not like the little man.

Sirius looked desperately from his friends to the open door where Morgan had departed only minutes ago. It seemed as though he wanted to say something. Finally, he sank into a chair and forced himself to calm down.

"She's right," he said. "She'll be fine."

No one noticed Peter had slipped out the open door.

Morgan awoke with a start. Tears raced down her cheeks as the dream refused to clear from her mind. It lingered and replayed itself; she was screaming at Sirius, she was rushing outside. Crookshanks's loud hiss as he streaked from the house.

A low noise made her jump. Whirling towards the large crack in the wall, Morgan saw a little furry paw--a head--Crookshanks!

"Crookshanks, what are you doing here?" she whispered, scratching his ears. Crookshanks dropped something into her lap and moved away from the wall, letting the moonlight stream into the gloom.

It was a small, square mirror; the two-way mirror!

"Crookshanks, you're a genius!" Morgan exclaimed softly. She picked up the silver mirror and said as loudly as she dared, "Sirius Black."

Nothing happened.

Morgan forced herself not to panic and thought that maybe someone else had the other mirror. Yes, that was it! She'd just have to try again.

"James Potter," she said.

Again, nothing happened.

"Remus Lupin," Morgan muttered, panic creeping into her voice. But....wait! What was that? It was Remus!

"Moony!" Morgan hissed, making sure that her face was as illuminated as possible. "Moony, it's me, Pawsly! Moony, please answer me!"

Remus's face lit up and he shouted to someone in the backround. A moment later, James and Lily appeared behind him.

"Where's Sirius?" Morgan asked.

"He's upstairs, worried sick about you," Lily said. "We're not calling him down until you tell us where you are. It's been three days!"

"Three days?! I've been out cold that long?" Morgan gasped.

"Out cold?" James repeated. "What do you mean?"

"Malfoy disguised himself as Dorcas," Morgan explain quickly, praying that no one wouls show up until she was done. "And he led me down an alley. That's all I remember. I guess he knocked me out or something. And--oh James! Voldemort killed Dorcas!"

A series of gasps came from her friends.

"Morgan, where are you?" Remus asked urgently.

"I don't know," Morgan admitted. "I'm in some sort of dungeon. Crookshanks managed to find me and bring the mirror."

"I always knew that cat had brains," she heard Lily mutter.

"Can't you get out?" James asked.

Morgan shook her head. "No. They took my wand, and I vaguely remember someone saying that if I tried to escape I'd be killed."

"Can you tell us your surroundings?" Remus asked urgently.

Morgan peered outside. "Crookshanks, move!" she hissed. When he had moved aside, she said into the mirror, "I think it's Malfoy Manor. The backyard looks awfully familiar."

"We'll try to get you out," Lily said. "But we're not telling Sirius."

"We'll be there as fast as we can," Remus added. Then the mirror went blank.

Morgan stuffed the mirror into one of her pockets. 

"Crookshanks!" she whispered. The ugly, squashed face of her cat pushed itself through the little hole in the wall. "Good boy. I need you to lead Prongs and Moony here. Hurry up. Go, now!"

Crookshanks rubbed his head up against Morgan's cheek before disappearing into the night.

Suddenly, Morgan heard soft scuffing sounds coming from her door. She stood up and brushed herself off, made sure the mirror was safe. She was ready to fight them the Muggle way if she had to.

"Well, well, I see you're awake," drawled Lucius Malfoy. He snapped his fingers and stepped aside. Crabbe and Goyle lumbered in, each seizing one of Morgan's arms in a painful vice grip, and literally dragged her out of the cell. Her feet scraped the ground painfully, and parts of her shoes were removed as they toted her upstairs.

The two cronies dragged her into a well-furnished room that Morgan recognized as the Malfoy Manor drawing room. 

Lucius strode in after them and closed the door.

"No need to hold her still, you two, she's perfectly capable of standing on her own," said a voice that made Morgan's blood run cold.

Crabbe and Goyle let go of her arms and Goyle pushed her roughly into the wall. The moment her back hit the stone, chains snaked themselves around her ankles and wrists, binding her there. Morgan cursed herself for not listening to Sirius, then wiped her mind blank of all thought.

"I see you're not going to make this easy," said a cold voice. The speaker turned around and Morgan fought off the urge to scream.

Voldemort stood there, his face snakelike and his eyes red. He looked deeply amused.

"I see you're even uglier than the last time we met, _Tom_," Morgan said coldly, forcing herself to remain brave and calm.

Crabbe, Goyle, and Lucius all gasped. Voldemort's eyebrows shot up; it was clear that he was not used to being spoken to like that.

"Mind your manners, Miss Anderson," he scolded. "You are a guest in Lucius Malfoy's house--"

"You mean I'm a prisoner in hell," Morgan corrected him.

"Why you little--"

Crabbe and Goyle had to use all their strength to keep Lucius away from their master and Morgan.

"Now, now, that isn't nice," Voldemort said, his voice a good deal colder than before.

And the room's occupants were silent for five whole minutes. Then--

Two knocks sounded on the door. 

Lucius glared at Morgan before opening it. Standing in the doorway was--

"WORMTAIL!" Morgan gasped. "I _knew_ you were a filthy traitor! How dare you! When Sirius finds out--"

Voldemort's white hand with its abnormally long fingers shot up to Morgan's face. The shock silenced her angry cries. He stroked her cheek a moment before saying, "Join us. We need someone like you."

Morgan's only answer was to spit in his face.

"How dare you!" Voldemort roared, seizing his wand. "Any last words, you ignorant girl?"

"Yeah," Morgan said hotly. "How did an ugly, cowardly git like you ever get people to fear you?"

"_Avada Kedvra!_"

Sirius's head shot up. He jumped from his bed. Something had happened. He knew it in his heart. Something had happened to Morgan.

He ran to the door, wrenched it open, and practically flew down the stairs to the kitchen.

"Is she here? Where is she? What happened? Is Morgan alright?"

Remus, James, and Lily exchanged glances. "Sirius, we have something to tell you," James said slowly.

"Where's Dorcas?" Sirius demanded. "Where's Morgan?"

"Voldemort killed Dorcas," Remus said slowly.

"And Morgan?!" Panic rose in Sirius's voice.

"Morgan's.....Morgan's.....oh Sirius, Morgan's been killed!" Lily sobbed, clinging to James.

Sirius looked as though life was not worth living anymore.

"Voldemort killed her personally," Remus said softly. He gestured to the ginger cat clearly in mourning on the chair next to him. "Crookshanks brought us Morgan's two-way mirror. We tried to reach her, but all we got was Lucius Malfoy. He even showed us Morgan."

"She died like a hero," James said helpfully. Lily sobbed even harder on his shoulder.

Sirius sank into a chair. This can't be happening, he thought desperately. It's all just a bad dream. I'll wake up in five seconds with Morgan safe beside me.....

"We heard that she had the guts to insult Voldemort," Remus added, "and from what he was cursing, it seemed she spit at him too." His voice was weird and strangled, and he was blinking furiously.

Sirius couldn't take it.

"I....I need to be alone right now," he said, making his way towards the stairs.

"Sirius....?"

"I'll be fine."

Remus walked slowly upstairs. He needed to sleep. It was all a dream, he thought. But he knew that it wasn't.

As he passed Morgan's room, Remus heard someone trying to shush themselves. He quietly opened the door and peeked in.

Sirius sat on the blue carpeted floor, his eyes closed, his head leaning back onto the wall. He was facing the doorway. Tears streamed down his cheeks and his eyes were red.

"Sirius, anything I can do?" Remus asked quietly, wishing he could cry in public like his friend. But Sirius was so distraught that he probably didn't notice.

No answer.

Remus walked quietly inside and sat beside him. Yep, he was still breathing, he thought. 

"Sirius, we're all affected by Morgan's death," he said softly, his eyes brimming with tears. "And there's nothing we can do but try to move on. She died so that others could live--"

"You don't understand." Sirius opened his eyes and stared at his friend. "We were going to wait for a while to tell everyone this, but....." Sirius took a deep breath. "The reason I didn't want Morgan to leave the house was because.....well, because she was pregnant."

Remus gasped. "So Voldemort--"

"Killed two birds with one stone," Sirius finished. "He killed my baby and my fiance. Damn fool probably didn't even realize it...." Sirius broke off and turned away. Remus was respectfully silent.

A few minutes later it was clear that Sirius just couldn't say any more. Remus stood up and walked to the door.

"Don't do anything stupid," he said. "I'm taking your wand with me." Remus held up Sirius's wand. "You can have it back tomorrow." Remus paused before saying, almost so quietly that Sirius couldn't hear him, "I'm sorry." 

And then he was gone.

Sirius leaned back against the wall. He stared out into the night sky the way Morgan used to when she was upset.

"Morgan, I told you not to go," he murmured, fresh tears falling. "You knew what would happen. You knew what we would lose. Why? Why did you do it?"

Silence was his only reply.

"I'm sorry," Sirius whispered, his cheek resting on the cool, smooth wall. "I'm sorry you felt you had to go. But why?" The tears were coming faster now, and Sirius didn't try to stop them. "Why?"

*

C'mon, review! You know you want to.... *crickets chirp* Okay, how 'bout if I give you a cookie?


	2. Beyond the veil

Disclaimer: Oh come on, people! If I did own Harry Potter, I'd be living in a mansion in London, not this little nothing house in Hawaii (which, by the way, sucks. Don't ever come here.). But if I did own them, James, Sirius, and Remus would be my main characters. Sadly, all I own is Morgan Anderson-Black, Romulus Anderson/Black, and Anneliesse Anderson/Black.

Morgan! Sirius tried to reach for her hand, but he couldn't move his arms. No, Morgan!

Morgan looked mournfully back at him, her eyes shining with tears, and then.....she was gone.

Sirius awoke slowly to many, many blurred faces. A cry of "SIRIUS!" echoed through his head and the wind was knocked out of him as someone hugged him tight.

The person had a mane of silver-blonde hair. Behind his 'attacker' was a redhead, a girl with bushy brown haired, and a boy with messy dark hair. James? No, it couldn't be James, Sirius decided. James didn't know a girl with bushy brown hair.

The person ontop of him finally pulled away, and Sirius saw that her eyes were shining with tears.

"Someone get Professor Lupin," she said to her friends, and a little red-haired girl that Sirius hadn't noticed before disappeared.

"Parker, don't kill him!" joked the redhead, pulling back Parker. Parker settled for just wrapping Ron's arms around herself and looking happily at her cousin.

"Remus?" Sirius choked. "Where?"

"I'm right here, Sirius. Lay down. We're taking you back home," came Remus's voice from the doorway. He was standing beside Ginny.

Hermione looked worridly at Remus, but all he did was give Sirius a potion. Sirius fell into a deep sleep the moment his head hit the floor.

Morgan sighed and went back to picking at her robes as she stared out the window. She knew Lucius Malfoy would never let her out of her attic room unless Voldemort told him too. He held her wand, and she would be literally shocked if she tried to escape via the large window overlooking the moor.

Well, at least I get a nice view, Morgan thought for the millionth time that day. She was bored, and very tired of wearing black. She wished that Electra would come out of hiding and free her.

Electra was Lucius Malfoy's daughter. Her family disowned her after she ran away when she was seventeen. Electra hadn't wanted to be a Death Eater, and was now hiding somewhere far away. Morgan knew better than to rely on her. She had a better chance of the sky falling than of Electra rescuing her.

The attic door, so like prison cell one, creaked open suddenly. Narcissa Malfoy walked slowly inside and placed a tray of food on the spindly table in the middle of the room.

Morgan eyed it cautiously. A jug of water, a piece of steak, and Morgan's favorite, cherry pie. Morgan simply turned up her nose.

"You have to eat something," Narcissa said reasonably. "It's been five days."

Silence.

Narcissa sighed. "What will it take to get you to eat?" she asked.

"Freedom," Morgan replied instantly. It was always her answer.

"I'm sorry, but the master said you are to stay here," Narcissa said firmly.

"So Albus Dumbledore wishes me to stay here until I rot?" Morgan said hotly.

This seemed to startle Narcissa.

"Dumbledore is an old fool," she said bluntly. "He is nothing more than--"

Morgan surprised her by flipping backwards, grabbing Narcissa's wand, and pointing at her heart in one lightning reflex.

"Don't you ever insult Dumbledore in front of me!" she said scathingly.

If looks could kill, Narcissa thought. Her hands were raised in front of her in surrender, her mouth open in a little O of fear.

Morgan grinned. 

"Tell Lucius that Azkaban suits him," she muttered. Then she streaked towards the door and locked it, knowing that without her wand Narcissa was helpless. Morgan then took off down the empty halls in the big, old, empty house.

"Where are they?" she muttered to herself. "If Voldemort ordered his lackies to do something to them, I'll kill him....."

She finally found what she was looking for.

Morgan opened the last door on the first floor to see two children sleeping peacefully in two beds with the Black crest on their sheets. A boy and a girl. The boy had twisted the sheets around his leg and sleeping as though he had had a fight with the bed. The girl was sleeping soundly, her hands tucked under her head in an angelic way.

Morgan dashed in and ripped the covers off their beds. The girl shrieked in surprise and Morgan clapped a hand over her mouth. The boy yelped as he fell out of bed and Morgan had to shush him too.

"It's me!" she whispered, throwing clothes and useful objects into a small sack she had stolen from the supply closet. "Get up, get dressed, we're leaving _now_."

The twins suppressed a shout of glee and did as Morgan told them. In two minutes flat they were dressed and studying a map of the moor behind Malfoy Manor.

"Oooh! Look at this!" the girl, more like a miniature Morgan, said, pointing to a forest marked _Unexplored_. "We can hide there!"

"Keep your voice down, Anneliesse!" the boy hissed. "We don't know if they can hear us!"

Anneliesse looked defiant. "You can't tell me what to do, Romulus," she muttered. "I can do whatever I want--"

"Both of you shut up!" Morgan growled. "You're so lucky that Lucius put off making you Death Eaters until he got back," she added, running along the corridors to the secret passage to the moor.

"Why, Mum?" Romulus asked, running just behind her and alongside his sister.

"Because the Ministry caught him and quite a few Death Eaters," Morgan said, stopping in front of a solid wall. A single gold ring, the size of a cantelope, hung on the wall at chest level. "Romulus, Anneliesse, help me with this."

The miniature Morgan and miniature Sirius looked at each other and shrugged. Then they helped Morgan pull the heavy ring, which opened a heavy door, and they raced outside to freedom.

Morgan stopped as they can to a clump of bushes. She hadn't been outside in ages! She was content to just stand there and look at all the greenery for hours, but the twins had other ideas.

"Mum, come on!" Anneliesse hissed and grabbed Morgan by the wrist.

"Okay, okay, I'm coming." Morgan rushed alongside her children, the sack clenched in one hand and Narcissa's wand in the other. She noted how much Anneliesse and Romulus looked like her and Sirius. Romulus was a perfect model of Morgan's fiance, and Anneliese was, as Morgan put it, a little 'mini me.'

"Mum, where are we going?" Romulus asked.

"We're going to get help," Morgan replied darkly. "We're going to Number Twelve, Grimmauld Place."

Sirius awoke sometime later, in a very dark room, in his bed at home. He sat up quickly and looked around. No one was there. But the dream was so real.

He had dreamt of the good times, before Harry was born, before all of this ever happened. He had just proposed to Morgan and she had said yes. She was hugging him and crying and kissing him and laughing. It was odd how she could have so many emotions in just one word. But that's when the dream turned bad.

He saw Voldemort killing her painfully, and locking her in a dungeon and forgetting she was there. He saw terrible images, and they scared him.

But she's not here, he told himself. She's dead and there's nothing you can do about it.

In fact, from what he had heard earlier, he had just had a brush with death. He cursed Bellatrix under his breath; that women always knew how his brain worked. It was inhuman.

He heard activity going on downstairs, and he heard his mother screeching. Someone must've rung the doorbell again, he thought. But then he heard something that sounded very strange.

"It's Morgan!" shrieked Mrs. Weasley.

"End Seerious!" Mrs. Silverson yelped in her heavy French accent.

"That's impossible," came Remus's voice. "Morgan is dead and Sirius is upstairs."

"We need to see Sirius Black," came a voice that Sirius didn't recognize.

"We've been told that he lives here," said another voice, a girl's this time, that Sirius didn't know.

"'E cennot be deesturbed!" Mrs. Silverson shouted after them but, judging by the footsteps on the stairs, they weren't listening.

"You can't go in there!" Remus shouted, at a moment later two children, twins actually, burst into Sirius's bedroom.

"Romulus, he looks just like you," the girl whispered.

"Just like Mum said," the one called Romulus agreed.

"Who are you two?" Remus demanded, standing in the doorway.

"I can assure you that we are not spies for You-Know-Who or the Death Eaters," Romulus said, showing his left forearm. It was clean. No skeletal sign there. 

"Anneliesse, show him your arm," Romulus whispered after a moment. The girl rolled up her sleeve and her arm was bare too.

"Then what are you doing here?" Sirius asked, sitting up tall in his bed.

Romulus and his twin sister Anneliesse turned toward him, glad to get away from the prying eyes of the werewolf.

"I'll be fine, Remus, you can leave," Sirius said when it became apparent that the two would not speak in Remus's prescense.

Remus muttered something under his breath and closed the door, but it was clear that he would be standing outside the door.

"Why do you need to see me?" Sirius asked.

The twins looked at each other. "Well, our mum actually told us we need to see James and Lily Potter," Anneliesse said boldly.

Sirius looked taken back.

"James and Lily died," he whispered. "Voldemort killed them personally."

The twins winced at the name, but had gasped when given the news.

"James and Lily are dead?!" Anneliesse yelped.

"Mum won't like that," Romulus said quietly, looking at the floor.

"Who is your mother?" Sirius asked curiously.

The twins exchanged glances again and Sirius thought he heard Anneliesse whisper, "I don't like lying, Romulus." And Romulus leaned closer to his sister's ear, but Sirius didn't hear what he said.

"We can't tell you that," Romulus said finally.

"But our mother needs your help," Anneliesse said quickly. "She told us to get Moony, Padfoot, and Prongs to help her."

"And that Wormtail is a dirty, no-good, fithy, lying rat," Romulus remembered.

Sirius chuckled.

"That's a very good description of old Wormy," he joked. But then the twins got this glint in their eyes, and Sirius stopped laughing. He was struck by something.

They looked just like Morgan and me, he realized at last. Down to the last detail.

And it was true. Anneliesse was pale and curvy, with long black hair and very flat bangs that would never fluff. Romulus looked like a slightly shorter, stockier version of Sirius, complete with dark eyes while his sister had blue.

"And now James is gone," Anneliesse said quietly. "Mum needs three people to help her. And she wanted it to be people she could trust."

"If you tell me your mother's name, I'm sure we can work something out," Sirius said kindly, getting out of bed.

"We can't tell you that," Anneliesse repeated firmly.

"Then at least tell me your last names," Sirius persisted.

Anneliesse and Romulus glanced at each other and whispered something inaudible. Then they turned to Sirius and said in unison, "Anderson."

"WHAT?!" Sirius yelped, falling back onto his bed.

"WHAT?!" came the echoeing shout and Remus burst in.

"Anderson," the twins repeated.

"But Morgan's siblings are all dead," Remus said. "Unless she survived....." He broke off and stared at the twins.

"Who is your father?" Remus asked suddenly.

"We never met him," Anneliesse said softly. "We've been living at Malfoy Manor since the day we were born."

"We never even saw the outside until just a few hours ago," Romulus admitted. "And Mum told us to come straight here."

Remus turned towards Sirius, who seemed to be in shock. "That would explain it," he said slowly. "Two children showing up out of the blue, who happen to look just like you and Morgan....And she was with child when she left," he added.

Sirius just sat there, his mouth opening and closing like a fish's.

Anneliesse giggled and walked over to him. Then, with a sharp thrust from her wrist, she snapped his jaw closed and Sirius blinked.

"But how did she escape?" he asked the girl.

"We don't know," Anneliesse admitted.

"But we do know that she stole Narcissa's wand," Romulus said helpfully.

"Never did like Narcissa," Remus muttered.

"We have to find her," Sirius said suddenly.

"But Sirius, we don't even know where she--"

"They do." Sirius pointed at the twins, who were now standing by the wall.

"Fine. But we'll need back-up," Remus said finally.

"We'll get it," Sirius said firmly. "But first we need Morgan."

Neither Remus nor sirius noticed Crookshanks streaking away in the direction that the twins had come.

A giant black cat silently prowled the forest, its huge paws making no noise as it jumped through the trees and landed safely on each tree branch. On its back was a grubby sack, full of things from Malfoy Manor.

Morgan Anderson was on the prowl.

She had transformed into her Animagus form shortly after the twins left. Since then, she had covered a lot of ground, never leaving pawprints, and sleeping in the shady trees. She knew that Romulus and Anneliesse would be able to find her.

A rustling noise forced Morgan to be silent. She laid her lean feline body down on a sturdy branch and waiting, crossing her huge front paws before her out of habit.

A furry orange streak jumped onto her back, startling Morgan so badly that she almost fell off her tree branch. Turning her massive black head to snap at the intruder, she would've jumped for joy if she was human. 

Crookshanks sat on her back, looking very smug. His ugly, squashed face showed triumph, and he easily jumped off her back so she could transform back into a human.

"Oh Crookshanks, you clever, wonderful cat!" she whispered, hugging him and kissing him. "But you can't live with Sirius....." She studied her cat closely. "You live with a girl, don't you?" Crookshanks purred. Morgan laughed softly. "You're such a good boy, Crookshanks, but we have to get a move on."

Crookshanks jumped off the tree branch and landed with grace on the ground. Morgan landed next to him with matching cat-like stealth. The cobby orange tomcat then lead the way through the woods, avoiding brambles and ravines, but never straying onto a path. That would be dangerous.

Crookshanks finally stopped at a small cave nearly hidden by weeds. Morgan entered first, and Crookshanks strode in regally after her.

Morgan awoke to the sounds of many feet trampling the grass by her hiding place. Crookshanks had gone. Morgan cautiously peered out of the little burrow.

She couldn't see much, except for a pair of very old shoes underneath very shabby robes, long black robes, and--Anneliesse and Romulus! They were back! And there was Crookshanks!

Crookshanks strode toward the cave, bottlebrush tail held high, and pawed at Morgan's face. Morgan knew that her cat would never lead her into danger, so she climbed out. Her first sight surprised her.

"Remus!" Morgan cried, and flung herself into his embrace.

Remus chuckled. "It's good to see you too, Morgan," he said softly, patting her back. 

Morgan pulled away; something behind Remus caught her attention.

"_Sirius!_"

"Morgan!"

The two embraced and for a long time, neither moved.

"I thought you were dead," Sirius whispered.

"I thought _you_ were dead," Morgan whispered back, clinging to her fiance as though her life depended on it. 

"Mum, chill out!" Romulus said after five minutes.

Anneliesse shuddered. "Stop being so mushy!" she said. "Who is this guy anyway?"

Morgan pulled away from Sirius and smiled at the twins.

"This," she said, leaning into Sirius again, "is your father."

Anneliesse's and Romulus's jaws dropped. 

"No way!" they exclaimed together.

"Well," Anneliesse said to her brother after a moment, "he does look like you. And act like you. And talk like you. And--"

"I get the picture," Romulus said. Anneliesse blushed.

"Morgan, what happened the day you left?" Sirius asked suddenly.

BOOM!

Death Eaters surrounded the little clearing. Crookshanks arched his back and puffed out his fur, hissing like mad. Remus gripped his wand. Romulus and Anneliesse had fled to their mother's side.

"Talk later!" Morgan grabbed her children and ran.

"What's going on?" Remus asked, he and Sirius running at breakneck speed behind them.

"Voldemort....angry.....I escaped....took the twins....we're dead!" Morgan shouted as she stopped, Anneliesse and Romulus crashed into her, and Remus and Sirius crashed into them, and they went barreling over a cliff.

"Well, at least we know our dad!" Anneliesse cried as the ground loomed ever closer.

"Anneliesse, shut up!" Romulus said angrily. "This is no time to be saying our good-byes!"

"Stop bickering!" Remus shouted. "We'll be fine! We're going to--"

Suddenly a net flew down and closed around them. Anneliesse gripped Crookshanks in fear; Romulus held onto his sister for dear life. Morgan was thrown into Remus's arms and didn't dare move. Sirius looked petrified.

The net was hauled up and they were dropped unceremoniously on the ground. The horrible, snake-like face of Lord Voldemort loomed above them.

"Well, well, I see my precious kitty has escaped," he sneered. "Weren't you happy there?"

Morgan looked fiercer than Sirius had ever seen her before.

"So you think I'd _enjoy_ being a prisoner in hell?" she spat. "And in case your little brain can't comprehend that, I'll make it easier for you to understand: NO!"

Voldemort looked shocked. Sirius's, Remus's, and the twins' jaws dropped. The Death Eaters looked confused.

"I can't believe she just said that!" Remus hissed.

"Mum's either very brave or extremely stupid," Anneliesse said, her eyes wide.

"But I respect either one," Romulus said, earning himself a punch on the arm from his sister.

"Are you stupid?" Voldemort asked suddenly.

"No, but you--" Morgan was silenced by Remus clapping his hand over her mouth.

Voldemort raised one thin eyebrow. "I see what you're doing," he said. "And it won't work."

"What the hell are you talking about?" Sirius asked, getting kicked by Morgan.

Voldemort acted as though he hadn't spoken. Instead, he said to Morgan, "Do I look stupid? Do I look stupid to you?"

"You sure you want me to answer that, _Tom_?" Morgan snapped.

Voldemort's eyes flashed red. 

"Because if you do, I'd have to say that my answer's yes," she continued, looking defiant.

Voldemort's abnormally long, white fingers shot from his cloak and cupped Morgan's cheek in a vice grip.

"I order you to shut up," he hissed. 

"Why should I?" Morgan spat.

Voldemort's grip tightened. "Maybe your ears don't work very well."

"Yeah, too bad my nose works just fine." Morgan made gagging noises and Voldemort released her. But, to Sirius's surprise, he didn't kill her.

Then Sirius's eyes widened. He fancies her! Sirius realized. Voldemort fancies Morgan! That's why he didn't kill her all those years ago!

"Maybe you need a little persistence," Voldemort said casually, and three Death Eaters seized Anneliesse, Romulus, and Crookshanks. Crookshanks hissed like he was rabid and clawed his way around the Death Eater's face.

"Romulus! Anneliesse!" Morgan yelped. She turned to Voldemort, fury etched on her face. "You let them go."

"I will if you marry me," Voldemort said slyly.

Morgan's eyes widened and she desperately fought the wave of sickness that had swept over her.

Voldemort shrugged. "Maybe you need a little help."

Two more Death Eaters seized Remus and Sirius. The Death Eaters were big and bulkly and probably pretty stupid, and the boys were no match for them.

"Remus!" Morgan cried. "Sirius!"

"Don't do anything he says, Mum!" Anneliesse gasped.

"Don't worry about us!" Romulus said.

"Silence them," Voldemort ordered.

The two Death Eaters closed their thick hands around the twins's throats. The more they talked, the tighter the hold.

"Mum, don't do it!" Anneliesse choked out.

"We're.....not.....worth...it!" Romulus's face was a faint shade of purple, and his eyes seemed glassy.

"ROMULUS!" Morgan screeched, making a break for her son.

"Stop her!" Voldemort shouted.

Morgan dodged a few Death Eaters and kicked many of them in a very tender place. She reached her son fairly quickly and with a few well-placed punches, Romulus could breathe again. She then helped Anneliesse. Crookshanks was fighting his own battle and won.

The three humans and Crookshanks then took care of Sirius's and Remus's attackers. Crookshanks clawed their faces; Anneliesse, who knew martial arts, kicked them in the head; Romulus triumphantly cracked their heads together. The twins slapped high-fives as Morgan embraced Sirius and Remus.

"GET--THIS--BEAST--OFF--ME!" Voldemort bellowed.

Morgan looked on in horror as Crookshanks clawed Voldemort's pale face.

"Crookshanks, NO!"

But the cat was determined. He clawed deeper and deeper. But then, Voldemort had had enough.

"Vile beast!" he screeched and threw the cat off him. As Crookshanks sailed through the air, he raised his wand, ready to kill the tomcat.

"_Avada--_"

"NOOOOOOOOOO!"

"_Kedvra!_"

A flash of green light, and an orange heap was all that remained of Morgan's faithful pet.

"You monster!" she screeched, raising Narcissa's stolen wand. "I'll kill you!"

"Morgan, no--"

"Morgan, stop--"

"Mum, no, don't do it--"

"MUM--"

But no amount of pleading could stop Morgan from what she did next.

"THIS IS FOR EVERYONE AND EVERYTHING YOU'VE EVER HURT!" she yowled, raising the wand. "_AVADA KEDVRA!_"

A scream of terror, and he was gone. Voldemort could no longer harm the innocent people of the world.

The Death Eaters fled. With their master gone, they would be next and they knew it.

Morgan spied one cloak that she recognized.

"You! STOP!"

She fled after him, and finally pounced him from behind. Wormtail's wild eyes stared back at her.

"Please, Morgan, I'm your friend!" he pleaded. "I was forced, I swear!"

"You seem to have been forced to do a lot of things, Wormtail," Morgan said coldly, the stolen wand still raised.

"Morgan, no, get off him," Sirius said, pulling her up.

"Let him go to Azkaban," Remus said, glaring at the little man cowering on the ground. "Voldemort may not have been human, but Peter is. I will not allow you to become a murderer." From his tone, it was very clear that his deep love for her wouldn't allow to her to do anything stupid.

Morgan glanced from Sirius's firm face, to Remus's stern one, to her children's frightened ones.

She nodded and then slumped to the ground in a dead faint.

"I hope she wakes up soon," someone was saying. "It's been days."

"I just hope she wakes up," said a mournful voice. 

"Mum, wake up!"

"Mum, please!"

Morgan heard these voices, but she could not seem to will her eyes open. They concealed her in blackness; she feel vulnerable and exposed. But then a thought coursed through her mind. 

_What had happened to Crookshanks?_

Morgan's eyes flew open and she sat up in bed, ignoring the sudden headrush, and swung her legs over the side of the bed.

"Morgan, lay back down," said Remus, gently pushing her back down.

"It'll be all right," Sirius was saying, placing the sheets over her.

"Where's Crookshanks?" Morgan demanded, refusing to lay down. "Where is my cat?"

A bushy-haired girl Morgan had never seen before moaned at the mention of the cat. A black- haired boy who looked just like James rushed to comfort her.

Remus and Sirius exchanged glances. Anneliesse lay buried in her brother's arms, sobbing.

"Where is my cat?" Morgan repeated. "What happened to him?"

"Morgan, do you, er, remember anything before you came to the hospital?" Remus asked slowly.

Morgan's eyes widened. "Yes. I remember Voldemort had ordered his stupid cronies to attack you.....and then I helped you escape....and Crookshanks....." She broke off, staring at her pale hands. Big, fat tears dropped silently onto the pressed linen sheets. "He killed Crookshanks......"

"Morgan, it'll be alright," Sirius said, placing his arms around her and kissing the top of her head. "We'll get married and live in beautiful old house, just like you wanted, and we'll get a new cat--"

"I don't want a new cat," Morgan whispered. "I want Crookshanks."

Suddenly, a silver-blonde-haired girl that Morgan had never seen before stepped forward, holding a squirming bundle. 

"Um, you don't know me," she said slowly, "but I'm Sirius's cousin." She held out the bundle. "I know it's not Crookshanks, but my cat Aisha just had kittens and I thought you might like this one."

Morgan took the bundle, which wiggled cutely, and unwrapped the blanket. A cute orange head poked out from the white mass of wool, and meowed sweetly.

"Crookshanks," Morgan whispered.

"You always _did_ say that he looked out for you," Remus said.

"The father is Crookshanks," the blonde girl added.

Morgan's eyes filled with tears.

Crookshanks, I knew you'd always look after me, she thought. You are such a smart cat.

"I now pronounce you husband and wife. You may kiss the bride," the minister said joyously.

Morgan smiled at Sirius, who grinned back, and pulled him into a deep kiss.

Anneliesse and Romulus made faces and looked away, causing much laughter among the shouts and cheers from practically the entire wizarding community of Britain. 

Sirius's name had been cleared when Carlos Silverson, Parker's father, brought in Peter and had him tell the truth of what happened all those years ago via Veritaserum, and Sirius was now a well- respected member of society.

Remus, the best man, smiled at Harry, who was one of the ushers, along with Ron, although Remus knew he'd much rather be the one Morgan was kissing. Parker and Hermione were the bridesmaids. And Anneliesse and Romulus, of course, were the ring-bearer and flower-girl.

"I _told_ you everything would be alright," Morgan teased. Sirius just grinned and pulled her into another kiss.

"MUM! Tell Romulus to stop annoying me!" Anneliesse shouted as she ran down the stairs.  
"Anneliesse started it!" Romulus protested. "She threw a bunch of Dungbombs into my bed!"

"Well you deserved it!" Anneliesse shot back. "You were reading my diary!"

"You don't _have_ a diary!" yelled Romulus, exasperated. "It was this little blue book--"

"That was my diary!"

"Since when do you keep a diary?!"

"Since I felt like it!"

"Anneliesse! Romulus! Stop it this instant or you'll both be sent to bed without dinner!" Morgan scolded, coming into the hallway. "I can't give you dinner until I am done! Now be quiet and I'll make you sone homemade ice cream."

Anneliesse and Romulus went back upstairs, grumbling and shooting quiet insults at each other.

Morgan trooped back into the kitchen where Sirius was reading _The Daily Prophet_ and a huge stack of papers sat opposite of him.

She sunk into a chair and immediately started writing, ignoring the cramps in her hand. With only the occasional noise from upstairs, Morgan worked in silence.

Sirius had bought a big old mansion before their wedding, just outside of London, seeing as how he refused to return to Number Twelve, Grimmauld Place. It had three floors, plenty of rooms, and a lot of stuff to fill. Empty cabinets, empty drawers, empty closets.....There was so much to be done!

"Finished," Morgan said triumphantly thirty minutes later.

"Ah, what are you working on this time?" Sirius asked with the air of a writing critic.

Morgan laughed. "It's called _How To Win A Guy In LESS Than Eighteen Years: The True Story of Sirius Black and Morgan Anderson-Black._"

"No, really, what's it called?" Sirius said, carefully folding the newspaper and placing it on the chair next to him. Then he adopted a hillbilly accent and said, "'Cause I'd sure like to know."

Morgan laughed and gently punched him in the arm.

"Sometimes I wonder why I married you," she joked. She used her wand to bind the pieces of parchment together before saying, "It's called _Like I've Got Nothing To Do But Think About You: The True Story of Sirius Black and Morgan Anderson-Black._ It starts way back before we attended Hogwarts and ends just after you bought the house."

"Sounds good," Sirius said, "but why would you want to spend all the time writing that book when the newspapers are publishing it every chance they can get?"

"_Because_ eveything they say is wrong." The way Morgan replied, it was as if it were the most obvious thing in the world.

"I knew I married you for a good reason," Sirius said playfully, wrapping his arms around her.

Upstairs, Anneliesse, holding the little kitten Crookshanks, and Romulus looked at each other.

"Mum, can we have a Chocolate Frog?" they asked.

Morgan, who had not really heard the question, said, "Yeah, go ahead."

Anneliesse and Romulus grinned and slapped high-fives. Get their parents to be all mushy, and the kids get candy.....Works every time.

Meanwhile, the our photographic people on the wall exchanged glances and cracked up. It was a picture of the Blacks in front of their new home.

Morgan looked more beautiful than ever; Sirius looked tanned and handsome. Anneliesse and Romulus had their arms around each others' shoulders and were grinning like maniacs. Crookshanks the kitten, however, took the opportunity to play with the loose strands of Morgan's hair.

And so ends another normal day in the Black household.

*

Review, God dammit! I know that at least one of you people likes sappy love fics! Just press the lil purple button.....I'll give ya a dollar....


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